Roommates
by EverAfterGirl
Summary: Josh is forced to attend a strict bording school. There he meets best friend and roommate, Matt Webb. I might have Jessica Lee appear later as as love interest for Josh but for now idk.
1. Meet the Roommates

**Prologue: Meet the Roommates**

**pug_pillows: **_What time are you getting here tomorrow?_

**acadia_1712: **_My parents are dropping me and Sara off around noon, why?_

**pug_pillows: **_Just wanted to make sure I cleared my shit off of your desk before you got here, haha._

**acadia_1712: **_You're gonna do maid service before I get there? Way to make a guy feel welcome._

**pug_pillows: **_It's going to be weird getting used to your sense of humor, Ramsay._

**acadia_1712: **_It's an art, Webb.__You'd better get used to it if we're going to be rooming together._

**pug_pillows: **_Greeeeaaattt_….

**acadia_1712: **_Shut it, man. See you tomorrow. Hope you're not as weird in person!_

**pug_pillows: **_Weird, no. I have been told I have certain awkward tendencies, though._

**acadia_1712: **_Fantastic._

**pug_pillows: **_Was that sarcasm?_

**acadia_1712 has signed off.**

**pug_pillows: **_You better remember that coffee maker!_

**pug_pillows has signed off.**

**Matt's PoV**

I've never had a roommate before. At least not here at Larten's. The boarding school assigns roommates alphabetically, and I guess Webb was the last name. Not that I'm complaining or anything. It's been nice, having my own place. Especially with the Vinlake sisters living directly across the hall, inviting all their friends over for pajama parties…not that I've noticed those or anything.

I got a call last week. Apparently some kid and his sister are transferring here, even though it's the middle of term. The girl's some kind of genius, I guess, 'cause she's got a full ride in the scholar's program. The boy - who I later learned was named Josh - was going to be in all of my classes. Naturally, since I have the last empty space in the dorm, the kid is being assigned my roommate.

I'm just hoping he's not some kind of jock. I've never been good at sports or keeping up with them, so there's not much chance of a friendship there. Plus, those guys are normally pretty popular, and social. I'm not an overly expressive guy, so I don't socialize that much.

The absolute worst case scenario is if this Josh kid hates music. What if he won't put up with me practicing in the dorm room? My guitar is my escape…if I can't play it in my own room, what am I going to do?

There's a knock on the door. Shit.

"Coming!" I called, setting my guitar back in its stand. With one last longing look at the instrument, I slouched over to the door, swinging it back on its squeaking hinges. Before it was even opened halfway, I greeted my new roommate. "Hi, I'm Matt Webb."

The boy in the doorway grinned, dressed head to toe in black, bright neon blue hair hanging over eyes that thickly lined with dark eyeliner. "Hey, man. I'm Josh Ramsay." As he spoke, I noticed a slight glint of metal in his mouth. Braces? I didn't dwell on it. So I was rooming with goth boy? This was going to be an interesting semester to say the least.


	2. Starbucks

**Not sure how often I'm gonna update this, but here's chapter two for now.**

* * *

**Starbucks**

"So how's the new roommate?" Michael Ayley - although I knew him as Mike - asked, taking a sip of his steaming coffee. It was early, almost cruelly so. Damn morning people and their insistance to meet for tutoring at the ungodly hour of 8.

I shrugged, noncommitedly, swallowing yet another gulp of my pineapple smoothie. "I honestly don't know, we only talked for a few minutes when he first came in." Josh had taken a little less than a half hour to lug his belongings up and into the room - insisting that he didn't need help - and promptly distribute them into a giant pile at the foot of his bed. I had figured the dude would go back later and sort everything out, but as of this morning...it was all just heaped there.

Mike raised an eyebrow, looking perplexed. "He a quiet dude?"

I laughed, shaking my head. "Trust me, I can already tell he's not going to be a quiet person." If anything, the guy talked incessintly. "The weird thing was that he just kind of disappeared after he finished bringing his stuff to the room. And then this morning, he wasn't there either, but the bed was still made like he never came back to the room."

"Weird." Mike agreed, with a small chuckle. He started sorting the Calculus notes we'd been reviewing, sliding them needly into the tutoring folder. "Maybe he just went for a walk really early?"

"At like 5 a.m?" I asked, "I highly doubt it. Plus, his guitar was gone." I had tripped over the empty case this morning, nearly slamming headfirst into my desk. I would have to have a talk with Josh about leaving his stuff in the middle of the floor - that is, if the guy ever showed his face again.

"Guitar?" Mike asked, sounding interested.

I nodded "He never said anything about being a musician, but I guess he must be if he brought it to boarding school. Pretty nice case too..." I remembered that clearly, as I had been forced to get my foot out from underneath the heavy case only a few hours ago.

Mike smiled, "You know, the two of you could do an epic guitar piece at our next concert..."

I groaned. Mike was always talking about the bad. Didn't matter that we weren't any good, didn't have a singer, and couldn't get a gig to save our lives. Mike still acted as if we were just on the brink of stardom. I mean, the optomism was welcome, but I wasn't sure it was really realistic.

"Hey guys," A voice pulled my from my thoughts as one of the baristas slid into the seat next to me. She looked down at the folder, brushing a strand of her long brown hair behind her ear. "Studying again?"

I shrugged. "You know, midterms are coming up and all that..." I looked away, embaressed that she knew I needed the tutoring. I quickly changed the topic. "Isn't it your shift, Jessica?"

She raised an eyebrow at me, tugging at the signature green apron tied around her waist. "No, I just wear this around for fun."

"Oh, uh-ummm..." I stuttered, trying to think of something intelligent to say. "Err...that's funny..."

Jessica laughed. "You are so awkward sometimes, Matty!" I flinched at the nickname. She noticed, and thankfully took pity on me. "I'm on break and I wanted to ask you guys something."

"Hmmm...?" Mike grunted, most of his attention fixed on his beloved cup of caffeine. He shook it sadly, and the last few drops came spilling out.

Jessica shook her head, exasperated. "Do you need another one, Mike? You know I can get you a discount if you want?"

"No discount in the world could get this guy as much coffee as he needs to be sane." I couldn't resist adding. Mike gave me a friendly punch in the shoulder before turning his attention back to Jessica.

"I'd love another one, Jess, but I can wait. What was your question?" He shot me a look halfway through the statement as if daring me to say anything. I held my hands up in mock surrender, and focused on Jessica's next words.

"Did you guys hear that music last night?" She looked a little confused as she asked. "And again at about two in the morning?"

I squinted at her. "Just how many cups of coffee have you-"

Mike cut me off, placing one of his hands over my mouth. "No, I didn't, but that could be because I'm on the other end of the dorm. Where was it coming from?"

"Oh, it wasn't coming from inside the dorm. Actually, it sounded like it was coming from above my room." She blinked, eyes droopy from lack of sleep. "But that's crazy right? The only thing above my room is-"

"The roof." I finished, swatting Mike's hand away. "Someone could've gotten up there if they used the escape ladder. What did it sound like?" Maybe it was Ian. That guy had a history of practicing at the weirdest times in the weirdest places. I once found him practicing on top of a dumpster, behind a speedway. At this point, I wouldn't put much past him.

She bit her lip, looking down at the table. "You know I'm not very good with instruments, but at first I think it was acoustic guitar? Maybe electric. I don't really know." She shrugged, lifting her gaze to meet my eyes. "Later, though, there was this voice."

I smiled. "Dont go all 'Angel of Music' on me, Jess."

Mike laughed, giving me a high five at the reference.

Jessica glared, but you could tell she was joking. "I'm serious. Some guy was singing, and you know what? His voice was _insane._ Like, unreal. At first I thought it was a recording, but I heard him mess up and start swearing enough times to know that was no CD."

Mike looked over at me, and echoed what I was thinking, "Well then, it sure wasn't Ian."

I nodded, perplexed by the mystery on our hands. "Did he sound familiar? Someone from choir? Trevor maybe? Or Chris?"

"Not at all," She laughed, "This guy had talent, and I mean ridiculous talent. Professional, undeniable, raw talent. I don't think you guys understand..." She trailed off, looking past me now, out the window. "Woah. Who's that?"

I turned around in my chair, following her gaze. A boy with severly distressed jeans, a dark tshirt, and neon blue hair was leaning against one of the trees in the quad, reading what appeared to be a Harry Potter book. "Oh, that's my roommate. Josh."

"Josh," She echoed, looking at him as if he were something exciting and envious. The look frightened me a bit, in all honesty. "He's hot."

Mike dropped empty cup of coffee he'd been holding. "Did I imagine something, or did you just say-"

"He's got blue hair." I said, flatly, looking at her with wide eyes. "That's weird."

"Sexy." She corrected me. Then she added. "Well, on him. I dont think a lot of guys could pull that look off."

"The dude is so pale," Mike added, "And he's dressed like some kind of punk-goth."

Jessica smiled. "He's hot. Now, if you ladies would excuse me-" Mike and I both shot her dirty looks. "I need to get back to by shift." With that, she slid out of her seat and sauntered over to the counter to clock in.

I looked over at Mike. "She's never been into any of the guys here before. Not since Peter."

Mike nodded. We were a bit protective of Jess, because she had been hurt so badly by her ex-boyfriend. She was one of us (I liked to think we were like the fantastic four, our own little group) and we didn't look kindly on people getting close to her. If anything happened, if she was ever as broken as she had been the night Peter had left her stranded in the city, we wouldn't be able to take it.

"We don't know anything about this Josh kid." Mike reasoned. "For all we know he could be totally cool."

"Or a douchebag." I reminded him.

Mike sighed, throwing his cup in the trash bin as he stood to leave.

"Or a douchebag." He agreed.

* * *

**review?**


	3. Music Class

**Music Class**

I got to music class a few minutes early, a bit of a habit I'd developed lately. The class just meant more to me than my other courses, I just couldn't quite figure out why. Scanning the room, I found a familiar set of eyes. With a smile, a began to weave my way through the cluttered disarray of chairs, trying not to knock anything over with my guitar case.

When I finally reached the drum set in the back, I dropped my guitar down on one of the empty chairs and turned my attention to the man behind the drums. "I see you're feeling better," I observed, taking in his healthy appearance. It was a relief after watching him get sick last week.

Ian smirked. "Oh, so you missed me?"

I rolled my eyes. "Shut up, dude. Mike and I were working on the demo, and it's a bit hard to do without our drummer..." I sighed, turning back to my case and undoing the bindings. "Actually, the biggest problem at this point is the vocals."

Ian stood up, setting his drum sticks down on the stool behind him. His face was etched into an expression of confusion. "I thought you were singing it?"

Shaking my head, I lifted my prized guitar out of it's case, taking the seat closest to the drumset. "Man, our lyrics suck. And my voice isn't working out with the arrangement anyways!" We had pulled together a fairly nice piece of music, but our lack of a lead singer was bringing our piece down fast.

Ian opened up his bag, sifting through all the crumpled papers until he had located the sheet he was looking for. He smoothed it out on the side of one of the cymbals, then handed it to me. "I think your first idea was better, honestly."

Looking at the words, scrawled out in my messy handwriting, I frowned. "It just doesn't fit with the sound we're going for-"

I stopped, noticing our instructor, a man with a face heavily lined by the many years he had lived. He was a cool dude, even if he did play favorites.

He noticed me and Ian, gave us a slight smile and continued on towards his desk, clutching a pile of sheet music in his arms. Soon, the room began filling with students. The class wasn't very big, but they had a lot of talent. Well, most of them anyways.

Just as the final bell began to ring, one more figure slipped through the door. Josh. The kid stumbled over towards us, height making his balance awkward and clumsy. He fell more than sat in the seat beside me.

I decided I'd be best if I was polite. I mean, we were roommates after all. "Hey."

He looked over at me, looking surprised. "Hey, man." He greeted, pulling out his guitar.

"Woah." I said, looking at the shiny blue intrument in awe.

Josh smiled. "You like it? I just got it."

I didn't lie. "It's awesome! Where'd you get it?"

"I designed it," He replied with a straight face. He pointed towards a star-shaped squiggle on the side. "I even got my signature painted on."

I looked down at my own, simple guitar and felt a little bit of embarressment. Here I was with a basic model, when the new kid comes in with a custom piece. How did I expect to nab the guitar solos now, if I looked like I didn't care as much?

"Class," Mr. Jones started talking, trying to pull everyone's attention to him. "Today we're going to focus on vocal music, so you can put your intruments away now."

A wave of protests swept across the room. No one liked vocal days, because Mr. Jones picked people to do solos at random, and if you couldn't sing it was quite embaressing. I slid my guitar back in it's case, securing the bindings with practiced ease.

"Chris," Mr. Jones nodded towards a blonde kid who was laughing at something in the back of the room, "You can start us off."

I had to resist groaning. Chris was the weakest singer in the class, and he always picked the worst songs possible.

I turned to Josh and muttered, "I know you're new, but you might want to cover your ears."

"Why?" Josh followed my gaze to wear Chris was setting up in the front of the room. "Him? He can't be that bad!"

Five minutes passed, and the performance was over. Josh had sunken deeper into his chair as the song had continued. "That was just..."

"...yeah." I finished. "I told you."

"'I told you?' What is this, kindergarden?" He asked, but his tone was light and he smiled slightly, so I knew he was joking.

Mr. Jones began motioning for everyone to quiet down as he thanked and dismissed Chris from the podium. "Next up, we have our new student, Josh Ramsay."

The boy next to me didn't react with horror or panic, the way I would have in a new school. Instead, he sighed and trudged up to the front of the class.

"Interesting hair, young man. Now, what are you going to sing?" Mr. Jones asked, oblivious to Josh's lack of interest.

Josh dipped his head to the side, as if thinking. "Would it be alright if I did an original piece?"

"Sure!" Mr. Jones sounded ecstatic. I guess no one had ever asked him something like that before.

I braced myself, hoping that the world would have mercy on my and my roommate wouldn't suck.

"_When your tears are spent..."_

As Josh sang, I noticed two distinct things.

Number one: what I had originally mistaken for braces was actually a silver piercing that went straight through Josh's tongue.

Number two: there was no way in hell anyone actually had a voice that good.


	4. Rehearsal and Rooftops

**Rehearsal and Rooftops**

"I'm telling you, Mike, it was insane!" I exclaimed, pacing the length of our makeshift stage. The band always settled for a unique practice location, and the cafeteria was nothing compared to some of our earlier experiences. "The dude's vocals are ridiculous!"

Ian smirked, polishing one of the cymbals of his drum set. "Normally, I'd argue with Matt, because we all know how fun it is to piss him off, but he's got a point. This Ramsay kid has just the sound we're looking for."

Mike turned his attention for the bass he was tuning to Ian. "I'm sure he's good, but it doesn't matter. We can never get a singer to join – at least not one who will actually stay past one practice!"

It was true. We had been cursed with bad luck in our search for a lead singer. A couple of decent guys had agreed to give it a go, but after a session with the three of us, always ended up making an excuse and leaving. Mike always had some hallmark-esque comment about how they 'weren't meant to be.'

I knew better. We could be annoying as hell if you didn't share our sense of humor. Plus, not many people wanted to stick with our sound. Apparently, we either weren't 'pop enough' or we weren't 'rock enough.' We were some kind of weird mix.

I sighed. "Come on, man, let's give him a chance. At least let me ask him to try out?" I didn't like admitting it, but we were desperate to find a singer. Not even my own sister would stick with the band!

"Fine," Mike said. "What have we really got to lose at this point?" He laughed, and soon we both joined in. Sure, we loved what we did, but we knew we had a long way to go before someone else loved it too. "Why don't you call him now? Invite him to practice?"

"Err…" I trailed off, glancing awkwardly away. "I don't know his phone number."

Ian shrugged. "So we'll audition him tomorrow, you can ask him when you get back to the room."

I nodded my agreement, before turning my attention to my guitar. Where the hell had I left the pick?

**o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o**

What I hadn't been counting on was Josh pulling a Houdini act. Again. Seriously, did the kid never sleep? After hours of practice, I had trudged all the way back to the room, ready to confront the new kid and…he wasn't there. The room was empty. The guitar was gone.

I was annoyed at first, but then I remembered something. Pulling out my cell phone I hit speed dial 3. After a series of two rings, a dazed voice answered. "Matt, what do you want?"

"Jess?" I glanced at the clock, mentally wincing as I read the time was after midnight. "Do you hear the music?"

She laughed, "Is this another Phantom joke?"

"Jess."

There was an intake of breath on the other line. "Ok, fine. I'll be serious. For now."

"Thank God." I muttered.

"What was that?" Jessica's voice asked, turning playfully sharp.

"Uhhh, nothing, Jess."

"That's what I thought," She pretended to be angry, but I could hear the laughter behind her tone. "The answer to your question is yes. Although, Sherlock, next time just open your window and you'll hear the music. This campus really isn't that big."

With that, she hung up. I felt a little guilty for not thinking this approach sooner, but I shook it off. Sliding the window open, I quieted my breathing to fully hear the sounds from outside.

Almost immediately I caught a bit of a slow, sad song. Slipping my room key into my pocket, I dashed out of the room and down the hall. I ducked into the fire escape, and started up the ladder to the roof.

As I got closer and closer, the voice got louder and more distinct. I no longer had any doubt. It was definitely Josh.

Climbing onto the roof, I waved to get his attention.

The boy looked startled, nearly dropping his guitar on the uneven terrain. "Matt?"

"The one and only," I agreed, unable to keep my sarcasm in check.

"What are you doing up here?" He asked, eyes wide. I may have been imagining it, but he looked a bit paler than usual as well. But that wasn't really saying much – the dude resembled a sheet on his good days.

"Looking for my mysterious roommate, who has, by the way, been MIA for most of the semester. Which started two days ago, so I'd say that's quite an accomplishment." I explained, taking a seat next to him, but keeping one hand on the fire escape for fear of falling.

Josh laughed, running a hand through his hair. "I'm sorry; it's nothing personal, man. I swear. It's just sometimes I need to get away, you know? Insomnia's a bitch."

I shrugged, not sure if I could relate, but surprised by the new information. "Whatever man, it's cool. Don't worry about it. I just wanted to run an idea by you."

Now Josh looked intrigued. "Do tell." He encouraged, tucking his free hand into the pocket of his hoodie.

"I'm in this band." I started, checking his face for a reaction, but it had remained expressionless. "We've kind of had tough time finding a singer, and I was wondering if you'd be willing to stop by tomorrow and see if you were interested?"

Josh closed his eyes, and I could tell he was considering the option. Finally he spoke.

"I guess I could stop by."


	5. Academy Day

**Academy Day**

I tightened the knot of my tie, rolling the corners of my collar over it with each. Smoothing out the dress shirt, I slid into my Larten Academy blazer, before taking one last look in the mirror. After a careful sweep of my appearance, I nodded, satisfied that it would pass inspection. I really couldn't afford another violation ticket.

Josh hadn't come back yet, and as I checked the time, a wave of worry washed over me. Leaving the dormroom because of insomnia was one thing, but the guy shouldn't just ditch his classes. Especially on an Academy day. With a sigh, I pulled a sheet of notebook paper from my spiral, then jotted down a few reminders about the day, leaving them on Josh's bed.

Hopefully when he returned, he'd have time to fix himself up. Lord knows what he would do with the blue hair though, that would likely be a problem with the officers. And the tongue piercing. Shit. I added one more note at the bottom, just a quick plea that he keep his mouth firmly shut. The management would not look fondly upon Josh's style choices.

I reached my classroom a few minutes earlier than usual, to give myself a chance to get one of the back seats. The farther back you sat, the less likely you were to be singled out. The first row usual got nailed for the most minor of offenses, and then a few poor suckers would be victimized in the middle rows, but the back was fairly safe.

"Matt."

I jumped, startled by the noise, and fell gracelessly into my seat, banging the back of my head on the wall behind me. "Oww..."

"Seriously," Jessica laughed, reaching out to steady me. "Could you be any more awkward?"

I shrugged, feeling a strong blush begin to overcome my face. Great, I was going to look like a tomato. Not exactly what I'd call 'discreet'.

As I attempted to relax my face, she slid into the seat next to me. She was prepared for the day as well, clad in a crisp white blouse and black pencil shirt. It was one of the only days of the year i saw Jessica wear heels, which was always weird cause they made her taller than me.

Students began filing in, quickly filling up the seats in the rear as they did. Every shirt was pressed, every blazer straightened with precision. There was an ominious feeling hanging in the air- Ok, maybe not that, but you could totally picture some creepy shit going down any minute.

With just under a minute to the bell, the last student rolled in.

"Ummm..." Jessica started.

I promptly collected my jaw off the floor and buried my head in my hands. Dammit, Josh! So much for auditions tonight.

To say my roommate looked out of place would be a bit of an underexaggeration. The dude was wearing black skinny jeans with giant ass zippers down each side. He had on a dress shirt, by some miracle, but it was untucked and rolled up to the elbow, exposing a clear tattoo. A blue tie hung loosely around his neck, resembling a scarf more than anything else, and his blue hair was a total mess. The neon converse didn't do much for his case either.

"You should probably go help him out," Jessica said, stating the obvious, as Josh took the only remaining seat in the center front row.

I nodded, beginning to push myself out of my seat, then falling back into it as the bell rung. One of Larten's moderators, the highest rank of authority at the boarding school, made his way into the room.

I'd had this guy before, I realized, recognizing his curly hair. What was his name? Mr. Smudge? Mr. Sludge? The details escaped me.

Curly hair dude paced to the center of the room, eyes trained on his clipboad. "Ok, class. You know how this works, so let's just get it over with." His tone was bored and uninterested, his face portaying the same emotions, until he looked up at the student directly in front of him.

It was pure comedy, the guy literally jumped back in surprise. Like, seriously? You've never seen a punk kid before?

The dude blinked rapidly, before maintaining his composure and addressing my new friend. "Young man, are you aware of what day it is?"

Josh shook his head, oblivious. "No sir."

I winced. Please let the guy believe that glint of silver was braces or a retainer.

He must have, because nothing new registered on the man's face. "Well, it is one of the four Academy days of the semester. We have them in honor of our founders and principals. It is each student's duty to portray the esteem and dignity of this school which..."

At that point, I honestly tuned the guy out. I could see his lips moving, but it was like I was watching a muted version of a dull movie. I rubbed the sleep out of my eyes, attempting to concentrate on his words, and failing. The next word I caught was 'detention.'

Of freaking course. The day we might find out singer, and he's spending it doing time for not dressing properly. Of freaking course.

Curly Hair Dude issued a few warnings and one other detention for a girl who thought she could get away with wearing uggs with her uniform. The part that confused me most about that was the fact that it was nearly 90 degrees outside. Why did she think she needed furry shoes. I mean, I guess they could be cool and all, but seriously-

Jessica pulled me out of my musings as the teacher made his exit. "Matt, you should go make sure Josh knows where detention is."

"Sure," I agreed, then after a minute, a smile broke across my face. "Come with me, I'll introduce you to the guy you find 'so dreamy'!" And with that I cracked up.

She hit me with her text book, and I shrunk away.

"I never said anyone was 'dreamy'."

"Uh-huh," I waved her off. "Details, details.."

I picked up my books, leaving her to gather her things as i approached Josh. "Hey, man."

He turned to face me, and I noticed the dark grey splotches under his eyes, made more noticable by the think coating of eyeliner across his bottom lids. Geez, I guess the guy really didn't sleep.

"Hey," He greeted, voice slurring slightly with exhaustion. "Sorry about the audition, I'll make it up to you, I promise."

I waved him off, "Dont worry about it, the guys and I will figure something out. In the meantime, I just wanted to let you know that detention is in the grey building just off the courtyard." I remembered the first time I'd gone there, and gotten so lost I ended up in the nurse's wing. She had seemed genuinely surprised to see a teen in his pajamas wandering in at 4:00, for some reason...

"Thanks, man." A small smile spread across his face. "I owe you one, just let me know when I can make up the audition!"

I nodded, "Of course. Just do me a favor and get some sleep first, ok?"

The thought of sleep seemed to weigh upon Josh's features. "I hope I can. Thanks again man, It's good to know I have at least one friend in this place."

And that was the day I realized I had become friends with Josh Ramsay. Little did I know the guy would turn out to be the best friend I ever made.

* * *

**What did you think?**


	6. The Moderator

**The Moderator**

"I know, man. I know." I reassured Mike over the phone. "But, we can always reschedule practice for tomorrow night! It's not like any of us are involved in anything important!"

With that, I got a chuckle from the other line. Sad as it may sound, we all knew the band was all we had. It was all that kept us sane. We'd rearrange our entire lives if it made the group run smoother.

"Mr. Webb!" I heard a voice call out. With a grimace, I turned to locate the voice. Who wanted something from me now? Some slacker who wanted homework help, I assumed. And asking me for help was a dumb move, seeing as I was being tutored, myself, in order to pass my classes. The logic of my classmates never made sense to me.

"Mr. Webb!" The voice called again, and I finally locked eyes with the speaker. My shoulders tensed when I realized it was one of my professors speaking to me. How long had they been calling for me. Hopefully it hadn't seemed as if I were giving them the cold shoulder. My grades were bad enough. The last think I needed was to piss off one of the professors personally.

"Yes, Professor Gregory?" I asked, keeping my tone neutral.

The older man squinted down at me through his spectacles, reminding me once more of the man's failing vision. "I've got some news for you, boy, and I don't think you're gonna like it very much."

"Oh, really?" I asked, rolling my eyes. When did professors ever bring good news? "What exactly is the news, sir?"

"Let's see…" The old man began, scratching absentmindedly at his scalp. I waited, tried to be patient, and kept one of the clocks directly in my line of vision. Tic. Toc. It really took this man a while to collect his thoughts.

"Oh, yes!" He finally exclaimed. "You're the mentor for today's reform session!" Then he patted me awkwardly on the back, and stumbled away, muttering about his days as a student mentor at Larten's.

I shook my head at the strange man's exit, before adjusting my backpack on my shoulder. Great. So much for my one afternoon off.

"Hello?" I called out as I entered the supervisor's office. Receiving no answer, I knocked once and then let myself into the office. Sure enough, Dr. Iyles lay asleep on his desk, half graded papers in a cluttered disarray around him.

I walked as quietly as I could – though I did trip slightly over the corner of his desk – and located the mentor sheet. Sure enough, my name was listed for today. Shit. Well, I guess moving band practice had been a smart move after all!

"Room 209," I whispered to myself, then proceeded to make my way out of the office. It had all gone quite smoothly til I hit the doorway…and ended up falling and face-planting onto the hallway floor. Amazing what damage an umbrella on the floor could have to my confidence.

"Need some help?" A voice asked.

I was about to retort that I was fine, and brush off the help when my mind registered the voice. Looking up at Jessica, I grinned sheepishly. "So I guess this doesn't do much for proving to you I'm not the clumsiest person on campus, huh?"

"Not at all." She laughed, and offered me a hand up. "Although…I did witness your roommate nearly fall down the stairs in the cafeteria today. It was pretty entertaining, to be honest!" She grinned. "You might even lose your title!"

"Oh the anguish!" I pretended to be hurt as I brushed the dust off my uniform. "Well, thanks Jess. I'll see you later."

She looked as if she were about to question where I was going, but then she just shrugged it off. "See you. Remember, I've got the early shift all week. The best day for your meeting would actually be Friday, because the shop is at half capacity. I know Mike was a bit uncomfortable when your conversation was the only sound in the shop!" With that, she giggled slightly at the memory and waved as she walked away.

"Sure thing!" I called out, grateful once again that Jessica was able to help coordinate things for us so efficiently. She was practically the band manager at this point, after all the things she had helped us with!

At last, I had reached room 209. With a sigh, I pushed it open. Might as well get this over with. "Well, guys, I'm your moderator for today…"

I trailed off as I noticed I only had an audience of one. And I knew this particular audience. "Oh, hey, Josh."

He looked up from what he was sketching in his notebook and his eyes widened slightly in surprise. "Matt? What are _you_ doing here?"

I shrugged. "The Academy likes to use students to discipline students. I'm supposed to sit here and lecture you on the code of conduct…and the dress code on Academy days…"

Josh arched an eyebrow as he began to close his notebook. "Supposed to?"

"Well," I laughed, "If you'd like, I can give you the speech. Otherwise, I was thinking I could explain a bit about the band…"

Josh grinned. "Sounds like my kind of detention."

* * *

Thoughts?


	7. Coffee Shop Meetings

Coffee Shop Meetings

The familiar smell of the coffee shop was a welcome sensation. After all the time I had spent in this particular Starbucks, I almost felt like I was owed my own table. In a way, it had become a second home of sorts for me, as well as the rest of the band.

I ordered latte, drumming my fingers absentmindedly across the countertop as I waited. And waited. Once the warm drink was in my hands, I migrated over to the usual meeting place, carefully sliding into my seat. The last thing I wanted was a repeat of the time I drenched myself in my own drink.

That had been mortifying. No wonder I was labeled as the awkward one. It was hard to live down such embarrassing situations—which I seemed to have a talent for ending up in.

It wasn't long before a Venti coffee—black, no sugar—was placed in front of me. Mike was cheerful as ever; smiling about something I didn't bother to ask about. The guy was always happy, and I admired it, but I didn't quite understand it.

"Hey," He greeted, dropping his bag to the floor before plopping down into his chair.

I nodded slightly in response, still trapped in my thoughts. It wasn't until Ian stumbled in, coughing lightly, that I snapped back into reality.

"You okay, man?" I asked, worried. He'd been sick, but we all thought he was was over it by now.

He held up a hand, then cleared his throat loudly. With a smile, he spoke, "Just choking on water. Again." With that, he held up his bottle of Aquafina, showing us the culprit behind the coughs.

Mike and I rolled our eyes at each other. Typical Ian.

"So how did it go?" Ian asked, settling into his place against the wall. As usual, he ordered nothing, just sipped from his bottle of water. We were all tight on money, but Ian especially couldn't go around buying a specialty coffee every day. He preferred to splurge on drum sticks and CDs.

I took a swig of my latte, wincing as I noted they had burned the espresso again. The service always sucked when Jessica wasn't working. "Actually," I said, "It was really fun."

Mike raised his eyebrows at me, and it was clear from his face that he didn't believe me.

"Seriously." I protested, shaking my head. "He's a really cool dude, and he knows music. Like, really knows music." I let that sink in before I explained. "He writes songs, guys, and that's always been a weak point for us. He can produce and he plays like, 8 or so intruments!"

Ian looked impressed. "Really?"

I nodded. "Crazy, huh?" I shook my head at the absurdity of what I had learned in that room. I hadn't expected to have such a great time, and I hadn't expected Josh to seem so much like…one of us. It was crazy how perfectly he would fit into the group dynamic if he agreed to give it a shot.

"I guess we should give him a shot," Mike relented. "Even if he did make the two of you miss the audition."

"I would have missed it anyways-I was on the schedule!" I explained. "And I'm glad you say that, because I invited him to come meet you guys. Tonight. And I think…." I squinted at the entranceway, trailing off before continuing. "Yeah, that's him."

If the hair wasn't enough of a beacon, the zippers on his jeans made it impossible to miss him. I guess we were more inconspicuous, because he had to stop and look around for a bit before he caught sight of us. When he did, he quickened his pace and approached us.

"Hey, Matt," He greeted, taking up the final chair. It was weird. We were used to it just being the three of us. Suddenly we were hyperaware of just how small the table was.

"Hey." I replied, politely, before introducing him to the rest of the band.

At first we all just kind of sat there awkwardly, not knowing what to say. Then Josh broke the silence. "So what kind of music do you guys typically play?"

Mike was the one to answer, as he poked holes in his already empty cup. "Mostly pop rock, some punk, a bit of alternative depending on the day."

Josh nodded, looking relieved. "So no country then? Good, I don't think my voice can do that twang." He laughed lightly, and soon the other guys joined in.

After that, some of the tension in the air cleared. The conversation grew more relaxed, and the guys even teased Josh when he went to get a smoothie. Josh had retorted that he would get whatever he wanted, he didn't care if it was a coffee shop or a meat factory: he just "wanted his damn smoothie."

Everyone got along fairly well, and I felt the knots in my stomach unclench. Good. The last thing I wanted was to bring someone into the band that they guys couldn't get along with. Then I'd be responsible for kicking them out, and I hated being in that position. Especially now that I had befriended the guy.

We all sat there a while, discussing potential practice times and songs we could cover until me, Mike, and Ian could learn the music to Josh's songs. However, the conversation slowly strayed from music.

"Alright, man, I have to know," Mike began, fingers shaking slightly from the amount of caffeine in his system. "What's up with the blue hair?"

Josh replied with a completely straight face. "I just really like smurfs."

We all kind of stared at him awhile, and then Ian started laughing. Oh. It was sarcasm. Ramsay had a sassy streak? Interesting.

We called the meeting to a close soon after that, and just as we were standing up to leave, Jessica breezed in to begin her shift. I waved her over, before she could stray behind the counter.

"Hey, Mattie." She smiled, looking slightly confused.

It was my turn to smile. "Hey, Jess. This is Josh." I Introduced, smirking as he face went bright red. "Josh, Jess."

"Nice to meet you," Jessica started. "Matt told me you were in the band now. Cant wait to hear you sing." Though her words shook a bit, she didn't seem as nervous as he had expected.

Josh, however, had turned a unique shade of pink. His pale, almost translucent skin, made the color pop out even more dramatically. "Uhhh," He stuttered when he could sight of her. "…hi."


	8. Chapter 8

Turns out, getting under Josh's skin was actually kind of fun.

"Soooo," I began, feeling a smirk play at the edges of my lips. "It looked like someone was really enjoying Jessica's company tonight..."

Josh looked up from where he was seated on his bunk. He rolled his eyes at me, then snatched a pillow by his side. "Shut up!" He laughed, chucking it across the room.

It landed a few feet away from me. "Nice throw." I joked, reaching over to retrieve it. "Sports not really your thing?"

He laughed, returning his attention to the guitar he was tuning. He hadn't said much since we'd returned from the cafe, but he seemed to be in a fairly good mood. Something (or I suspected someone) had put a bit of bounce in his step. "You could probably say I'm allegeric to sports and people might believe you. I dont know, man, I just cant get into it. There's no connection. It's not like music."

I nodded, because in all honesty I felt the same way. There was just something about music that captured my attention. More than that, there was something that seemed to capture who I was. After feeling something that strong and unique, it was hard to settle for other things in life that just brought feelings of adequecy. And i didnt really want to settle for feeling adeqette. I wanted to feel good, and I now knew Josh understood that.

I didnt say anything though, because I didnt feel I needed to. I was sure after the first practice he'd feel the dedication that other guys had for the craft. He'd see the passion when they played, even though we never had a real audience to play for. And in my mind, that was what mattered. Being able to be satisfied with just the music, not necessarily swimming in success. We just needed to be happy.

"And besides," He said, breaking the silence that had momentarily taken hold. "I dont exactly have the coordination for it."

I laughed at that, recalling the moment just hours ago when he had managed to both trip up the stairs and knock over a younger student all in the span of 10 seconds. It had been quite the scene to witness. I had no intention of ever letting him forget it.

"You excited for tomorrow?" I inquired, putting my last bit of homework on my desk with a small feeling of triumph. It felt good to be done.

Josh made a sound that I couldnt comprehend.

I turned to look at him. "What?"

He had a guitar pic between his teeth, and he was struggling to put his guitar away without getting off his bed. A difficult feat when the case was several feet from where he was seated. He had a strained look on his face, and honestly it would have been pretty funny to watch.

But years of my parents teaching me to help out kicked in like some sort of bizarre autopilot setting, and before I realized it, I had taken the guitar from his hand and slid it into it's case. "What were you trying to say?"

He threw the pic into the open case and leaned back against the wall, sighing dramatically. Everything the kid did was dramatic. I was actually a little surprised he wasnt one of the theatre kids.

"I guess. I dont know what you want me to say, Matt. It's just a fucking practice, isnt it?" He flashed a grin, making it clear that he was just kidding around. It didnt do much to soothe my nerves.

"Well, yeah, you could look at it that way, but you have to remember that it's also-"

Josh laughed, cutting me off midsentence. "Dude, relax. I know how important this audition is to the guys. I just wanted to make you sweat for all the Jessica jokes."

Oh. I hadnt thought of that.

Josh yawned and pulled himself to his feet. I couldnt help noticing the bags under his eyes were worse than ever. He noticed me staring and he winked. "I know i'm a fine looking son of a bitch and all, but I think we're best as friends-"

I threw his pillow back, hitting my target. "Shut up and get some sleep, ok? You look like the walking dead."

With that, I leaned back on my bunk, letting my eyes drift shut. It had been such a long day, and to be honest all the stress surrounding our possible new singer was mentally exhausting. I just hoped things would work out because honestly, I'm not sure what I'd do if the band thing fell through. It was all I knew, and there was so much riding on it.

I awoke with a start, a loud ringing flooding my ears. Clearly not my alarm and therefore not when I wanted to get up. Great.

I rolled over, snatching it from the bedside table. Accepting the call I muttered something I hoped resembled english and waited for a reply.

"Hey, Mattie, it's me."

"Jess?"

She made a smart aleck comment at that and I smiled. It was short lived, however, when I caught side of the clock. "Why the hell are you calling at 3 am?"

"I was hoping you'd come retrieve your roommate, because I've got a chem lab tomorrow and I cant get any work done with him playing above my room." She sounded tired and a bit fed up.

"My roommate? Josh is here, he's..." Then I noticed the bunk across the room was blatantly empty. And the guitar case was once more lying open on the ground. In the perfect place for me to trip and injure myself if I were to get up in the night. I groaned.

"...he's playing right above my room." She finished.

"Why dont you go get him?" I retorted, not appreciating the sarcasm at the late hour. "You're the one who's got it bad for him."

There was an indignant shriek from the other line before i heard it diconnect.

Great. I'd managed to piss of Jessica. I could only pray that I wouldnt have to suffer her wrath.

Opening the window, I caught a bit of a slow melody in the distance. Listening to it, I found myself nodding along. This was it. The sound the band was going for. I'd have to ask Josh about it in the morning.

Abruptly the music cut off.

Good job, Jess.


End file.
